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Oregon lawsuit decries Democrat governor's clemency push as unlawful after nearly 1,000 convicts freed
[FoxNews] Two Oregon district attorneys and the families of three murder victims have filed a lawsuit against Democratic Gov. Kate Brown over her approach to granting clemency – arguing that it’s against the law.They claim she’s freed almost 1,000 people without properly notifying the victims or their families in advance. The prosecutors, Lane County’s Patricia Perlow and Linn County’s Doug Marteeny, are also asking the judge to stifle Brown's policy on commutations for people convicted of crimes as minors. "We are asking that the court compel the governor to follow the laws that are already in place," Monique DeSpain, a lawyer for Perlow, Marteeny and the homicide victims’ relatives, told The Associated Press last week. In November, Perlow sent out a statement blasting Brown over a clemency order freeing eight suspects from her district. "Of those convicted, three were convicted of murder, two of sex crimes against children and three of robberies with weapons, including a stabbing and a failed attempt to shoot a customer in a store," she said at the time. All were under 18 at the time of their crimes, but some details are heinous. In 2002, Brian Hardegger was convicted for his role in the murder of his own mother, committed at the age of 17. "Defendant and his father buried the victim, Hardegger’s mother, alive," Perlow said. "When the victim tried to raise her head above the dirt, Hardegger pushed her head down with his foot so that he and his father could finish covering her up. Hardegger dug the hole beforehand." Perlow also took issue with another case involving a 17-year-old, Connor Allen, who was convicted of first-degree sex abuse after sodomizing a 7-year-old. "Victims of crime in Oregon have Constitutional and statutory rights that are being ignored by Gov. Brown, the Oregon Department of Corrections and the State Parole Board with a first priority to these offenders of a ‘meaningful opportunity to be released,’" Perlow said in her statement. "Victims of crime deserve the enforcement of their rights they fought so hard to have recognized." Related: Kate Brown: 2021-09-17 Minnesota Dems Expel State Rep. Thompson Amid Domestic Violence, Residency Controversies Kate Brown: 2021-08-10 Oregon governor signs bill suspending math, reading proficiency requirements for HS graduates Kate Brown: 2021-06-11 Oregon will allow homeless individuals to sleep on public land in all communities Posted by: Skidmark 2022-01-26 |
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